New Restaurant Update: Canvas & Lighthouse Diner

Jake Crocker of development group Prodigy Partners stopped by my blog and commented about the progress they’re making on 2 new restaurants- Canvas on E. Broad and Lighthouse Diner on Hull St. in Manchester. I thought his update was news-worthy and deserving of more attention than it’s receiving as a comment on an old post, so I’m posting it here:

We are on schedule to open Canvas on Dec. 1st; we’re currently in the demo stage. The first floor will be a counter order cafe; mainly catering to the lunch crowd. The second floor will feature small art gallery, a couch and arm chair lounge area and a large glass ceiling atrium addition that will service the dinner and bar crowd. The third floor will feature another small art gallery, two private meeting/dining rooms and a rooftop deck that will have a spectacular view of the CNB tower looming overhead. We’re confident that Canvas will eject life back into that area just in time for the opening of the Hilton, Federal Courthouse and Richmond CenterStage. It will do to the city center area what the Tobacco Company did to Shockoe Slip and will give convention center visitors something to talk about when they go home other than the urban decay that currently exists outside the Convention Center’s door.

As for the Lighthouse Diner, we are working on it, but won’t put our full attention into that project until Canvas is up and running. Look for it to open in late 2008/early 2009. Old Manchester will be another Carytown, I encourage more people to set up shop with us down there.

Our group is dedicated to not only purchasing and renovating buildings in downtown Richmond, but to establishing thriving businesses that will accelerate revitalization of those areas.